Nicolas Kummert – La Diversité

Nicolas Kummert – La Diversité

A contemporary jazz project rooted in openness and cultural fusion, La Diversité reflects Nicolas Kummert’s expansive approach to composition - blending modern jazz, world music influences, and reflective songwriting into a cohesive, emotionally resonant statement.

Kummert, a Belgian saxophonist and composer, is known for working across genres and ensembles, often exploring the space between structured jazz harmony and freer, more atmospheric textures. On this album, that approach is especially pronounced: pieces move between lyric-driven compositions, modal improvisations, and minimalistic interludes that emphasize tone and mood over complexity.

Tracks like Rainbow People and Le Peuple De L’Arc-en-ciel highlight the album’s thematic focus on unity and diversity, while Harmattan and Liberté draw on broader global and political atmospheres, using rhythm and space to evoke movement, displacement, and openness.

A notable feature of the record is its reinterpretation of classical and popular material, including multiple readings of Erik Satie’s Gnossienne and a reflective take on Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, reimagined in Hallelujah Again. These moments sit alongside original compositions like Diversity Over Purity, which directly frames the album’s philosophical core.

The result is a modern jazz work that prioritises inclusivity of sound and idea—less about virtuosity, and more about dialogue between cultures, styles, and emotional states.

Tracklist:

1 Rainbow People
2 Le Vent Se Lève
3 Harmattan
4 Lighthouse
5 Hallelujah
6 Gnossienne
7 Gnossienne à Deux
8 Liberté
9 Le Peuple De L’Arc-en-ciel
10 La Terre Ne Ment Pas
11 Diversity Over Purity
12 We’ll Be Alright
13 And What If We’re Not?
14 Hallelujah Again – In Memory Of Leonard Cohen